Practitioners Seek Compensation from BP

I applaud the real estate community in the Gulf Region for standing up and sticking BP with a bill in which they are responsible for (among others). This spill is a gigantic mess that will take years to deal with economically, and more importantly environmentally.

Among people trying to collect compensation from BP for income loss caused by the oil spill are real estate practitioners.

Four states-Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida-have opened claim centers where residents who lost income due to the spill can request compensation.

Only Florida is reporting its numbers. Over the last three weeks, BP has paid $75,725 to begin settling 446 claims against it for income lost from rental properties. It paid another $5,000 to begin settling losses due to stalled real estate sales.

BP CEO Tony Hayward said in a TV commercial, "We will honor all legitimate claims, and our clean-up efforts will not come at any cost to taxpayers."